The Vow
by DancerCity
Summary: When Renna was little, she made her own vow to Gaara: To be his only friend. But when Konoha captures Renna, she can't keep it. Now, when on a mission with Gaara 10 years later as a jounin, she is determined to keep her vow. But will Gaara forgive her?
1. Prologue

~The Vow~

-Prologue-

I had always been a person who wouldn't put up with much evil. I had always known it was wrong to discriminate against someone who was born differently; made differently; acted differently. And I knew _I_ was right, and everyone else was wrong. But that didn't make things any easier; it made them harder. But I don't regret doing the right thing.


	2. Ball Knees

Ball.

It was almost dark; me and the other children were playing ball. We always played ball after our Academy lessons were over.

"Over here! Renna, over here!"

Joyfully I tossed the ball. Back and forth, we tossed the ball. No one noticed the little red haired boy sitting on the swing, in the shadows of the trees. No one _wanted _to notice. He was a monster. Or so everyone thought.

I was daydreaming these thoughts when the ball whizzed above my head. I scrabbled to get it, reaching out, but it was already too late; the ball had caught onto the gutter of a nearby house. It was too high for any of us to reach.

"What should we do?" Asked Maru.

"We haven't learned the wall climbing jutsu yet," said Chiko.

We were starting to give up and stop our game; we would have to get one of the older shinobi to get it for us later.

Then sand started to gather around the ball. It grasped the ball, and started moving it over our heads.  
Each of us gasped and turned around.

It was Gaara, the "monster". He brought the ball back to his hands. He was happy to help.

"Here," he said, holding the ball out to us.

I smiled and began to walk toward him, but everyone else was screaming.

"It's Gaara!" They were all shouting. Hushed fear seeped into their voices. "RUN!" One of them shouted. The others caught on. "Run! Run! It's Gaara!" They all ran. "It's the sand demon!"

They stampeded forward like a pack of bulls. I got flattened into the wall. What were they doing? Even though Gaara had the Shukaku in him, it was obvious enough he could control it; he wouldn't intentionally hurt anyone.

"Hey," I called to them. My voice was drowned out by his.

"Wait!" He cried. "Come back! I won't hurt you! Come back! Play with me!" Sand gripped the ankles of the children, dragging them back.

"NO! Help me!" They cried.

Gaara started sobbing. "I don't want to be alone anymore," he whispered. His shoulders hunched over, and the sand gripping the children fell to the ground. Wasting no time, they ran away.

Knees.

By now Gaara's anguish had brought him to his knees. He started screaming.

"WHY…I.."

Quickly I ran over. "Shh Gaara!" I knelt down and took him by the shoulders.

"It's okay. Don't pay attention to them. They're cowards," I spat out the last word.

He looked at me, his eyes wet.

"Why do they run? Why are they scared of me?" He whispered.

That I did not know. I was trying to figure that out myself. I hugged him.

"I will play with you. It was nice of you to bring the ball back. I think you're nicer than…_them._"

He had been looking down, but now he looked up at me again, and smiled hesitantly.

"I'll be your friend, even if no one else will."

When I had said that, I was making a vow not only to him, but to myself as well. I would not let the simple fact that Gaara had a stupid sand demon in him ruin his life. Alas, it might've ruined him anyway.


	3. Eavesdropping Black Out

Eavesdropping

"Kazekage!" I ran toward the office. I was ecstatic that I'd been chosen to deliver the important message. I raised my hand to knock, but something stopped me cold.

My name. I heard my name, they were talking about me! I was relieved, and about to knock again, when I registered the tone. They sounded…angry?

"What should we do?"

"Konoha wants the vermin. Let them have her. Renna is nothing but a nuisance. Befriending the…the _demon. _He doesn't deserve friends. Renna may also be rubbing off on the kids. She's transforming Gaara into a…_normal _kid."

"Konoha wants to kidnap her for her family's powerful genjutsu inheritance. She's the last one of her family to inherit the _kerin_."

_What? They were talking about my family!_ I growled. Why did they have to remind me of my mother and father and my legendary jonin sister Rhea, who died in a mission to Iwa? I was only 3 when it happened. And what was that I supposed to have inherited? What was _kerin_?

"When are they going to kidnap her."  
"We don't know."

"Well, you have brought up a good point. _Kerin_ is valuable. Set up some loose guards. I guess we'll try to keep her a little bit. But - if we lose her, that's that. I almost want to get rid of her; give her to Konoha."

Black Out

I gasped. They were _letting Konoha kidnap me??!!_ How could they?

I loved Suna!

And…

What about _Gaara_? We were about to take the assessment to become genin! He would have no one! Even his brother and sister shunned him! Angry tears began to fill in my eyes. WHAT IS IT with everyone! Can't they see, Gaara is not the monster. Shukaku is. But Gaara is already learning to control it! I forgot all about the message as I ran down the hall, my tears blurring everything together.

_I should tell Gaara,_ I said. _He would save me!_

We were closer than anyone else in the planet. I knew I would save him, and I knew he would save me.

I ran straight to his house and rapped on the door. Temari opened it a crack and peeked her head out.

"What is it Renna?" She bit out. She wasn't pleased with my friendship with her little brother either.

"Where's Gaara? I need to talk to him!"

"He's not in."  
"I NEED TO TALK TO HIM! WHERE IS HE?"

"I don't KNOW! Go find him!" And she slammed the door.

Tears stung my eyes again.

"Gaara," I whispered. I ran around and around the village, climbing every building, into every shop. "Gaara, Gaara," I called. It was getting terribly late, but I needed to find him.

But I was getting so tired…so tired, my legs were jelly. But NO! I needed to find Gaara, to warn him. My lids were drooping; the last of my tears were dried and crusted onto my cheeks. I crawled toward the alley wall. Could I get home? I didn't think I would make it.

"I hope he finds me," I whispered, right before I blacked out.

**A/N: hello, this is my first story i hope you enjoy it so far...even though its only the beginning...but please REVIEW if you want me to update more, thats the only way i'll know ;) otherwise i might just keep this one to myself *hehehe***


	4. Kidnap

Kidnap.

I awoke to shouting. I was still tired. The moon was high in the sky, and I realized I was _freezing. _Where was I?

Oh.

Last night came back to me in quick fragments.

Oh no. No no..

Ninja were all around me now, kunai and shuriken were raining down all around me.

I brought my arms up to hide my face.

"Stop!" I choked out. My voice was gravelly with sleep. "Stop, stop! Don't…take me-" My violent protests were cut off. Someone had stuffed a way to big ball of cloth in my mouth.

"MFFHPFOFJMFH!" I mumbled into the cloth. I began thrashing my limbs wildly, hoping I could score someone. But now I couldn't see. They had put a bandana over my eyes, and one over my mouth, securing the ball of fabric into place.

Next I felt my arms and legs violently being pushed together. It was like I was paralyzed. I didn't know what was going on. I couldn't see, I couldn't speak. I was so scared. Where was Gaara?

"Let her go!" I was being jostled around. The cloth over my eyes slipped. It was a team of Suna chuunin. They _were _saving me! A kunai slipped passed me and cut open the cloth around my mouth. I quickly tried to spit out the ball of cloth. A new stream of Konoha ninja were coming in. They were at a higher level than the Suna ninja. Why did the Kazekage send _chuunin? _Why not _jonin?_ With painstaking rage I remembered what he had said: _Set up some loose guards. If we lose her, that's that. I almost want to get rid of her; give her to Konoha._

The Konoha ninja were knocking down the Suna shinobi like bowling pins. They lifted me into the air, not even bothering to refasten any of my bindings. I could shout now, and shout I did!

"GAARA!" I screamed at the top of my lungs.

"GAARA, GAARA!! HELP!" My lungs felt like they were going to burst, but I kept screaming.

He appeared at the end of the alleyway.

"Gaara! Help me!" I cried. He was here now!

Sand had begun to gather and swirl. The Konoha ninja were moving fast now, but I knew Gaara's sand would be faster.

I waited, relatively calm now.

But I was waiting…_too_ long.

Where was he? Where was his sand?

I looked back, and in horror, I saw Gaara's sand begin to retreat. He was looking at me with the strangest expression.

It was like he wanted to come and get me, but he also didn't want to.

Regret flickered across his eyes. I could read his eyes the best. Those beautiful blue orbs showed the deepest remorse as he turned away.

I was staggered. It was almost as if he had punched me in the gut. In fact, that probably would've been better than him turning away.

**A/N: hello i hope you enjoyed it, i really enjoyed writing it! remember to REVIEW if you want me to update more...:)**


	5. Mission

-About 10 years later-

Mission.

"You're a dork, Naruto!" I teased. We were strolling around Konoha, then we (well he, actually) stopped for ramen, and now we were off again.

"Humph." He stuck his nose in the air. Still so childish. "It's not my fault. The lady didn't specify."

"Naruto, Renna!"

We turned to see Sakura running toward us.

"Hokage-sama received a message from Sunagakure. They want our help. Us along with some of the Suna jonin are going to help get back their genin! They've all been kidnapped to the Land of Ice."

Naruto smirked. "Suna can't take care of their own genin?"

"Shut it, Naruto. Sakura, _all _of the genin have been captured? How?"

"Who knows? But yes, they've all been captured. They're asking for some top jonin. This'll be our first mission as jonin. I'm choosing, you and Naruto, I will go as the medic. They have the most powerful jonin already lined up to go too. Temari, Kankuro, and Gaara."

Something inside of me froze at the sound of his name.

Gaara.

It had been so long since I thought about him last.

_(Flashback)_

_I thought about him a lot after they captured me to Konoha. All my genin days and most of my chuunin days were spent thinking about him. It made me sad; I still loved him incredibly, but if he still loved me back I wouldn't be here._

_Eventually the charm of Konoha and my classmates drew me in; I made new friends, and eventually, there would be days, then weeks, when I didn't think about him._

_If I had had the chance to sit down and properly think, I would've thought about him more often. Because it wasn't that I didn't care anymore, I just had too much going on, preparing to be jonin and all. _

Now, as we leaped trees to Suna, I thought overtime. It was as if all these dormant years of not thinking of him had gathered, pent up, and now was racking my brain, making it think overtime.

_What is he like now? Has he found new friends? Has he forgotten about me? What if he hasn't? What if everyone still hates him, and he turns out..?_

The last thought was the most recurring, and the one I tried to keep away from the most. I wouldn't be able to bear it. After I tried so hard to keep him.

I realized now, along with our team mission, that I had my own personal mission. If he was okay, and had moved on, then fine. But, if it was like my stinking suspicion hunched, and he had found no other friends, my mission would be to make sure he felt loved again. Like before. I realized that had been my vow from the beginning, and I had not kept it. I was angry with myself. This time, I had to succeed.

A sudden flow of chakra bunched through my foot, and as I stamped down onto the tree branch, it sizzled.

**A/N review if you would like me to keep updating...thanks~**


	6. Lodge

Lodge.

We eventually met up with the Suna team, and we began the journey to the Land of Ice, making no stops. This gave me no time to talk to him, but plenty of time to analyze.

He had not said a word since we met up.

There was something about the way he leapt through the air. His aura was angry. All those years apart did not hinder all those years I spent _with _him, and the attunement we had. His emotions and aura, all that was there before, was still there, clear as a bell.

I began to worry. I suspected that my hunch was right; he had found no one else.

We were halfway when it grew dark.

"Do you think we should travel the night?" Naruto asked.

"I don't think so," Sakura said. "We need energy to keep going in the morning. If we have enough energy tomorrow, we'll make it there by tomorrow night."

Kankuro nodded. "Okay. There, I see a rental lodge we could stay in."

I was surprised when a growl resounded.

It came from Gaara.

Temari and Kankuro threw wary glances at each other before looking at Gaara.

Naruto and Sakura looked apprehensive.

"You guys are _weak,_" he ground out. He turned to his brother and sister. "I should have expected more from you. You are a _disgrace_ to our village," he spat. "And we don't need help from these weaklings. They will only obstruct us further," he said. He threw a quick glance my way, and I almost fell off the branch we were standing on from the look of absolute hate that bore from his eyes into mine. Even though it was a fleeting glance, the revulsion there lingered.

Temari and Kankuro hastily calmed down Gaara. Naruto and Sakura just looked relieved.

We made our way to the lodge. The owner gave us each our separate rooms, because he had enough.

It was good to have some privacy. I went to my room and unraveled a bit in the shower.

After I had clean pajamas on, I sucked in a deep breath and made my way to Gaara's room.

**A/N: hi, this is where im gonna leave it until i get enough reviews saying they want more? so . . . REVIEW if you want me to update more! ;)**


	7. Vow Confessions Breakfast

Vow.

If that look he gave me earlier discouraged me, it was only by an infinitesimal amount. I was still determined to keep my vow.

Confessions

I raised my hand and knocked softly, twice. I hoped he wasn't still washing or anything.

"Enter," he grumbled.

I bristled a bit. He sounded like the bossy Hokage!

I turned the knob. I was unusually nervous. But that was because this Gaara was so different from the one I knew, the one I had been comfortable with ten years ago.

He was sitting at the desk, facing the window, away from me.

"Gaara-sama," I said. The title seemed too formal, so I dropped it. "Gaara, just listen-"

"Go. Away." He said this slowly and deliberately. He didn't turn around.

"Please. I'm sorry. I-I…My promise-I…wanted to keep it. I will keep it. I still care about you, Gaara! I'll still be your friend, I just haven't-"

He abruptly got up from his chair in a swift movement, the chair scraping against the wooden floor.

"Shut up. Go away." He was making his way to the bathroom.

"Stop! Wait!" I unthinkingly grabbed his arm.

He froze.

I did too.

"Don't touch me." He ground out.

I dropped my arm. My resolve was wavering. I felt tears beginning to well up, and my throat was closing in.

_No. I can't lose this._

"Please. I'm so sorry. I love you!" I choked out.

Finally he turned to face me. It was the disgusted look again. His eyes were drilling into me, holding me in place.

"You never sent me any letters or anything at all to let me know you were okay. Nothing for the past _ten years!_" He spit out. "You have some kind of nerve."

His words were a slap in the face. The tears finally spilled over. He went blurry.

"Sorry," I whispered. "I just…I was…" I took a deep breath and started over. "I just thought you didn't want me anymore when you turned away that night," I said. "It looked like you were going to save me, then you didn't. I thought you wanted me to leave."

Something inside of him changed. The statue melted. That look of regret and remorse filled his eyes again, like they did ten years ago.

"How could you think that?" He whispered. "How could you think I didn't want you anymore?" His voice was rising. "I always wanted you! Did you even give one thought about me, because I did! All those years!"

"Yes, I-"

"You were my only _friend!_ And then no word from you!" He was positively shouting now.

"Shh, Gaara," I said idly.

"I…I still love you," he said, his voice breaking. It was soft now. I asked the most obvious question.

"Then why didn't you save me?" I held my breath for the answer.

"I just…I didn't want to be a monster. I didn't want to lose control," he mumbled.

I was stunned.

"Even to save me?" I whispered.

He didn't answer. He turned away and left me.

Breakfast

After a fitful sleep, I woke groggy and disoriented. _Did last night really happen? _I thought.

"Ren," Sakura called softly. "Breakfast's ready. We're going to leave as soon as you're done eating."

"Okay," I croaked out.

Finally, after a big sigh, I cracked my eyes open and began getting dressed.

When I arrived to the kitchen, only Sakura and Gaara were there. After a swift glance out the window, I realized the others were done eating. I moved robotically around Gaara.

"As soon as you two are done," Sakura said. "I'm heading outside with the others. We've paid the owners already."

Sakura moved out the door.

_No,_ I screamed inside. _Don't leave me alone with him._

Oh well. Good opportunity.

"Good morning, Gaara," I said timidly.

He barely looked up from his scroll to nod at me, his eyes cold and furious again.

It was like last night never happened. After all those confessions! I sighed. I was beginning to lose my patience.

"Look," I said. "I'm sorry that I never sent you any word, okay? I just didn't know if you-"

"Okay." He cut me off.

"What do you mean okay?"

"I don't care."

"You don't _care?_ So you _still _don't care about me?" I flared.

He stared blackly down at his scroll.

"Do. You." I chopped up the two words like he did last night.

"No."

He might as well have stabbed a knife through my heart, because suddenly a searing pain soared through my chest.

"_No?_ So. What you said last night was a lie then." I struggled to keep my tone calm.

Finally he looked at me.

"It doesn't matter what I feel, because we can't possibly be together anymore. You have left me too much pain and devastation."

"I'm sorry!" I cried desperately.

"Look, remember when I said that I would be your friend even when no one else would, those ten years ago?" I felt at risk broaching the subject.

"I was making a vow to myself to be your friend, to not let the fact that everyone was scared of you ruin your life."

He pushed away his chair suddenly and began packing his scroll.

"But I don't need that vow anymore!" My voice rose in panic as he started toward the door.

"Even if you didn't need me, even if everyone else wasn't scared of you, I still would've loved you." I paused to regain myself. "I still love you," I said quietly. "It's too strong for-"

Again he cut me off.

"I always needed you," he informed me. He stopped short of the door.

"I always needed you, and you just up and left me. You broke your vow, anyway."

"I'm sorry I said! I said I didn't know-"

"You let the simple fact that I didn't save you put a doubt in your mind? Like I said, Renna, you were my only _friend. _You were my only one! Even if I hadn't wanted you, what could it hurt to _try _to send me something?"

"I was afraid of-"

"Yes, you were _afraid. _You are a selfish _bitch!" _

I winced. He stared at me darkly before striding out the door.

**A/N: hello all again...ive decided just to put it all up b/c otherwise it would be just sitting uselessly on my computer and when im finished i wont ever look at it again....so might as well just put it here right? but i would still appreciate some reviews..... ;)**


	8. Damaged Attack Tent

Damaged

We were moving quickly through the forest. It was getting thinner and thinner as we neared the Land of Ice.

I tried to stay as far away as possible from Gaara.

That man disgusted me.

I was done trying with him. He was right - I had damaged the vow beyond repair.

Attack

About halfway to the Land of Ice we got attacked by some rogue ninja.

"Ooh la la," they taunted. "Some nice little shinobi to play with."

Obviously they greatly underestimated us.

There were about 20 of them, but 10 of them were the pack leaders. The other ones seemed to be minions or something.

The six of us decapitated them in a matter of minutes; then more came.

"What the hell is with these people?!" Naruto shouted after awhile, fighting off yet another batch of 20.

"Where're they all coming from?" I wondered.

Eventually we found out the source of all these people. It was a single rogue ninja, producing solid clones that did not disappear into air when they were beat.

"No wonder," I muttered.

"We could've saved a lot of time if we knew these were actually clones," Sakura remarked.

"I've never heard of solid clones before," said Temari.

We were all poised to fight off the rogue ninja.

It turned out he was a pretty tough guy. Those clones were just obstacles to make us tired; I could feel all of our chakra diminishing, but even so he was no match for us, top jounin of our villages.

With all six of us, we finished him quickly.

"Well that wasted a lot of our time," Kankuro scoffed.

We looked at the quickly darkening sky. The bright light was beginning to fade.

"We should just keep going," Naruto said.

"Um," Sakura said. "Our chakra is pretty low; what if we run into another problem like this? We'd be so emptied out. This really isn't convenient, but I think we should rest another night and replenish our chakra."

I sighed. "Sakura that's what you said last time."

"Sorry Ren, but think, what if we kept going from yesterday? Without that night's rest we would've been totally finished when we ran into that ninja."

Since she was the team's medic nin, we reluctantly agreed and set up camp there in the thinning batch of forest.

Tent

I was already beginning to feel cold, so I produced a fire.

Naruto was the only one who was excited that we were low on tents; the rest of us groaned. We only had 3 tents for the 6 of us.

"Well, we'll have to share!" He said brightly. "I guess Temari and Kankuro can share, and me and Sakura will share!" He glanced at me. "Oh, and Renna…will have to share with Gaara…"

I glowered at him. It looked like his crush over Sakura hadn't diminished since our genin days.

"I'd rather share with Sakura," I said. "I…feel more comfortable sharing a tent with a girl."

What a lame excuse. All of us at one point or another had to share a tent with the opposite sex.

"It's alright."

I looked, astonished, over to the source of the quiet voice.

"What." I grit through my teeth.

"Just let Naruto share with Sakura."

He left the rest of us speechless.

"Let's get going," Temari said finally. "Food, and then sleep."

I fumed inwardly as I set up our stupid tents.

I really hated him!

The whole night while eating our dinner I was dreading sleeping alone with him. Our tent was plenty spacious, but it was too awkward. I would be able to feel his energy, what he was feeling, radiating off of him all night.

I offered to stay behind and clean up, inviting the others to go ahead.

Stalling.

Finally I couldn't delay any longer. I climbed through the tent flaps where Gaara was sitting on his sleeping bag.

Pouting the whole time, I angrily began setting up my sleeping bag as far away from his as possible.

He made it hard; he set up his right in the middle.

I indignantly pushed the side of the tent, willing it to stretch a little further.

When I accidentally punched a whole through the side, he spoke.

"Sorry," he intoned quietly.

I froze.

How dare he. How dare he speak to me? How dare he apologize for-whatever it was for-after all those things he said?

"Shut up. I don't want to hear," I spat out.

"Sorry! It was wrong of me to hurt you," he said. "But it's true…every time I look at you…its just…something inside of me…_dies._ I can't do it. The past is too…" he was struggling for words.

"…Real," he whispered.

I huffed.

"Too bad," I sang out, just like a child. I knew I was being silly. "I agree; we can't be together, because you make me _sick." _I looked at him the most loathing on my face I could muster up. "Oh and I don't accept your apology," I remarked harshly.

I then leaned over and blew out the candle, plunging us into darkness; it was like the signal of the end of the conversation.

**A/N: ya'll may already know this if you read my prev. chapters but i dont really like editing much *sheepish grin* so....ya most of these i just sat down and wrote and really never look back to edit. so yeah. sorry bout that. i hate editing.**


	9. Rescue

Rescue

We made it into the Land of Ice without any other problems. The sun was high in the sky; it was about noon time.

"Alright, lets just kick their asses and go," shouted Naruto.

"Hold it," said Temari. "I have the information…we sent a couple of chuunin to scout around here a few days ago. They said these guys seem pretty tough. We actually probably could've done it ourselves, but the Kazekage wanted to be extra sure." Her voice had a hint of malice in it.

"We _definitely _could've done it ourselves," Kankuro sneered. "The Kazekage has balls for a brain! Who does he think we are?"

Temari opened the scroll, ignoring her older brother. "Here's the map…hmm. Okay, they're in the graveyard behind the Kakariko Village, they said. We have four teams of 3 genin, so that's 12 genin in all. Be on the look out for 2 ninja who are wearing distinctive frosty white suits with red all over them. The chuunin said they were like the leaders. Then they saw a whole bunch of guards."

"So, why'd they steal the genin again?" Sakura asked.

"Not sure," Temari murmured. "I think they're looking for a specific genin, or something. I'm not sure. The Kazekage knows; he won't tell. But it doesn't matter. Let's go." She straitened up and put the scroll back into her vest pocket.

"Let's just scope first and get a hold of the situation," she said.

We traveled quickly over the sheets of ice on the ground, arriving at a village. It was like an oasis in the desert, it didn't have ice and snow all over and was warm and grassy. The sign proclaimed it to be "Kakariko Village". We entered, assessing the population; it looked like a lot of people lived here. There were children, chickens, dogs, and even cows running around everywhere. "Wow," I breathed. "This land looked barren until now."

We leapt up into the trees, and followed until we reached the graveyard connected to the village. It was almost blocked off from the rest with gates and tall bushes. There was only one entrance, and it was through the village. It was a graveyard for the people in Kakariko.

All of us apprehensively peeked through the leaves to get our bearings.

With shock, I realized only 2 teams of genin were there, guarded by one of what must've been the "leader" Temari was talking about, and a couple other guards.

Naruto growled when he registered this; Sakura and Temari gasped; Kankuro groaned, and Gaara did nothing.

"The chuunin said they were _all _here," Temari scowled.

"Well. We'll just have to _force _the answers out of them," Naruto snarled.

"We can try," Temari said doubtfully. "I wonder why they moved them. Maybe they narrowed it down to which groups of genin their "target" is in."

"How big is Land of Ice?" I inquired.

"Um, not that big, it's just a little border between Amegakure and Kusagakure; it's actually not even on most maps," Temari answered. "Why?"

"Well, if we can't force it out of them where the rest of the genin are, then I guess half of us can scour for the rest, and the other half can stay and fight and get _these_ half back."

"Good plan," Sakura said.

"Alright…you three stay-" Temari pointed to me, Sakura and Naruto- "And we'll go, if we cant get it out of them."

In unison, we shot out of the trees and landed smack in front of the leader, in a strait line.

"Ah ha," the rogue nin said. "Suna, we've been waiting for you. So many of you."

"Half of us are Leaf Nin," Temari growled. "You were expecting us?"

"Yes. We actually saw your little chuunin trying to spy on us earlier; we knew you were coming. But we've already narrowed them down."

_Just as Temari said, _I thought.

"We took our target groups to a…_safer _location. We were just waiting for you guys to come pick them up…but not without a fight, of course. Fighting is _so _much fun… especially when I can go all out," he sneered.

"HOLD IT. Where are the others?" Temari said in clenched teeth.

"Nah. Won't say," he teased.

Quickly I thought if one of us had the special ability to _make_ him say. I thought with regret that Ino's mind jutsu wouldn't be bad right now.

"What if they're not in the Land of Ice? They could've taken them to Kusa, or Ame, or even some other country," I hissed through my teeth so only Temari could here. She gave a slight nod, indicating she'd already thought of this.

"We've got it covered. Shouldn't be too hard to find," she hissed back, stealing a sideways glance at Gaara.

"Well…bye then." Temari gave us a subtle wink, and the three siblings took off.

"Hah. Whatever. Toru's the best at hiding. Don't think they'll find him," the ninja said. "Should we get some introductions done first? I'm Kane, and-"

But suddenly I had a thought.

"The people in the village know about this?" I said incredulously.

"Nope. Brainwashed them. Good ol' Tomio. Only useful guard we have."

Just then we heard a cry.

"HEEELPPP!!!"

It was the genin. The voices sounded hoarse, like they've already been yelling for hours.

As if that was a cue, Sakura, Naruto, and I all launched into a battle, ensuing Kane's guards to flow out. So many of them. So, so many!

"Let's see how good they are," Naruto said, performing his old Kage Bunshin no Jutsu.

Suddenly a hundred Narutos were fighting off all of the guards.

"Hmph, this should be super easy," I snickered. As a chuunin, I had not lost a battle yet, once my _kerin _kicked in at the chuunin exams.

Wasting no time, I performed my genjutsu.

"Hm," I said in consternation. Kane was a fighter; it looked like he _had _learned how to fight against genjutsu. But mine was too unique; you couldn't fight this one off without having practiced a billion million zillion times to the _kerin, _and even then it was iffy. So, I concentrated a little harder.

Soon, he was in his happiest state. He was floating around in his past, a particular time when he was most content; he was in a blissful trance, forgetting all about the current battle.

Sakura had practiced many times with me before; once she saw him drooling around, his eyes glassy, she came in for the "kill".

An ear-splitting slam resounded, and Kane was knocked out cold by Sakura's enormous strength.

Maybe he was dead.

"Dead?" I inquired peacefully.

"Most likely."

Naruto and effectively finished off the guards, and we proceeded quickly to get the genin.

They were in horrible shape. There was a mess of snot, pus, and tears all over their faces and they were malnourished. Kane and Toru had obviously not put in much effort into keeping them healthy.

"HELP," one of them croaked. His voice was giving out fast.

"Shush," I said. "We are."

In no time, Sakura busted the steel cages, and the 6 genin stumbled out.

"Should we go find-"

I got cut off by an inhumane, thunderous howl.


	10. When You're GoneWill I Lose Control?

I don't know if Kane was being for real, or if he was just trying to scare us, but Toru really wasn't that great of a hider that he was hyped up to be. After all, he wasn't even in another country! We found him in a thick batch of forest after traveling for about 2 hours taking reference from Gaara's 3rd eye.

There was a building in the middle of all the thick branches; it was no treehouse, it was actually a _building, _which, I presumed, held the rest of the genin.

At first there was no one there, not even the guards. But we were smart enough to know that if we got close enough we'd probably get mauled by their little booby traps. So we stayed there and called until Toru, in the white and red suit I described, came out with only 2 "bodyguards". He seemed to think he was a hotshot, by the sneer on his face.

"Ah, the Sand ninja have finally came…took you long enough."

"Buddy, if you don't want to get hurt, you'd better hand them over right now," Kankuro warned.

"Hmph…how did you find me so fast? This forest is so thick, even if you got into the right forest you'd get lost."

We didn't tell him about Gaara's abilities.

_He doesn't want to know,_ I thought grimly.

No sooner had I thought that than Toru caught a glimpse of my little brother.

"Oho," he said. "Who do we have here? _Gaara of the Sand, _ooh lala, big deal. Big deal."

I bristled. He really shouldn't be talking to Gaara that way, but that was his fault.

I looked over warily at him to see how he reacted. He just looked darkly back at him.

Toru wasn't done taunting though. "You're nothing special…you're just a _monster." _

At this, Gaara snarled and the sand bits swirling idly around him began to pick up and whirl.

"You are a _monster,"_ Toru jeered again. "I bet _you _haven't gotten any friends, because everyone's _scared _of you."

At this, Gaara let out a fearsome snarl, and the sand began to pick up.

"I do," he growled. I could just barely make out what he was saying; his voice was drowned out by the whipping of his sand.

Enough was enough. I began un-strapping my Kyodai Sensu, just as Kankuro was unraveling his puppet.

But it was too late. Toru had already gone too far. He just didn't know where to quit:

"Well I bet the only friends _you _have are just pretending! They-" But he got cut off. With an animal roar, Gaara transformed: Half monster, half human.

The human side showed so much hate and lust to kill.

It had been a while since I'd last seen that look on his face: The last time was after that wench Renna had been taken to Konoha.

"O-okay," Toru stuttered, finally scared. "Y-you can h-have them! J-just c-c-control that

m-m-monster! D-don't let h-him k-kill me-"

Of course Gaara would have none of that. The Shukaku's massive hand grabbed Toru and pinned him into a tree.

Toru had an intense look of fear on his face; it was almost comical.

"Oh no," I murmured. "No, no." This could be bad: I couldn't control him, and Kankuro couldn't. No one I thought of would make him turn back: last time we waited it out until he got so worn down, and half the village was destroyed.

And that had been when he was just a little boy.

I shuddered inwardly at the thought of the damage he could possibly do now.

No one I thought of could make him control himself, except for one.

Just as Gaara was getting ready to sic him with sand, she was here.

Looking flustered, as if just arriving at a murder scene, trying to gather it all in.

But if anyone had a chance to control Gaara, or, make him control _himself, _it was her.

Never in my life had I been so glad to see her.

**A/N: Ohhaithar again....hope u enjoy....oh and 10 pts to anyone who can tell me the 'song' hidden in this chapter WITHOUT USING GOOGLE hahahaha jk i wouldnt know ;)**


	11. Rush

Rush

_Gaara!_

That was the single thought that ran through my mind when I heard it.

Sakura and Naruto looked at me in alarm.

"Who…is that..?" Sakura began.

"I think," I said numbly. "Stay with the genin! I'm going to find them!"

I took off, the adrenaline in my body pushing me faster than I had ever dreamed of going; I was almost flying.

I had no idea where they were. I just basically followed my gut instincts and the occasional rumble from him.

Because I didn't have time to think strategically about anything. If he transformed, then we were as good as gone.

All of us: Temari, Kankuro, Naruto, Sakura, me, Gaara.

Especially Gaara.

**A/N: plz review thank you!!!!!!! 3**


	12. It's Just A Little Sacrifice

"GAARA!" Renna screamed at the top of her lungs when she unfroze. She began running at top speed towards him. The Shukaku had already taken over half of his body: Only a minimal part of him remained human.

"RENNA DON'T," I yelled. What a complete _idiot! _

She didn't listen, of course.

She only got about half way until Gaara glanced back and swiftly flicked her away with Shukaku's tail like a horse swatting away a fly.

She flew back into a tree trunk and fell, limp, onto a lower branch.

Gaara focused again onto Toru, who, by now, was getting ready to faint in fear. Gaara let out another grumble and began again with his little sandstorm gathering.

I just didn't know what to do. If I did anything to provoke Gaara at all, it would only end in disaster.

But I could see, faintly, in what was left of his human eye, a flicker.

He seemed to be rethinking something. Slowly, he turned back to where the lifeless Renna was laying.

His eye flickered again. Almost reluctantly, he turned back _again _to Toru, determined to slay him before he was done.

But he seemed to falter. I could see it right before my eyes: He was still struggling to not be a monster. Even when the monster was threatening to overtake him wholly, he was still struggling.

My hunch was right: Renna did seem to be taking a toll on him. A good one.

The flicker in his eye was stronger now: I could make it out as regret.

It was odd. A human emotion was displayed in a monster. It just showed how freaking much Gaara was fighting against being a beast.

The sand around him had broken out of its violent tornado-like whirl, and was just floating loosely around.

He made another indecisive swing of his head, and it looked like he compromised: He smashed the sand into Toru's face, then unpinned him. Toru fell onto the branch like a rag doll.

So fast that I didn't know what was happening, Gaara turned back wholly human, rushing towards Renna.

It was anger and hate on his face again, but this time I knew it was for himself.

**A/N: another hidden song............all of these songs im expecting no one to know, esp. this one cause you can even barely hear them say this in the song XD**


	13. Waking Mixed Emotions Leg

Waking

I had been drifting in and out of consciousness for awhile. I was floating when I wasn't drifting. It was like I was a lost balloon cable, slipped away from the hand, cut off from the balloon itself; just floating around aimlessly.

While I was floating I saw and heard many things: voices, shadows, and monsters. Terrifying monsters; it was like a nightmare, and it was the kind where you are running and running from the monster but really you aren't going anywhere.

But then the murmuring grew louder and clearer and it was making my headache.

"Won't you shut up." I tried to mumble; it was _hard._

"Did she say something?"

"What did she say?"

"Shut up all of you!"

The hushed whispers stopped, as if waiting for something.

"What am I supposed to do, turn into a rabbit?" I said again. I tried harder this time, and it felt coherent to me.

"Whoa, did she just say-"

"Shut _up._"

I sighed inwardly (because I couldn't outwardly, otherwise that would hurt too much). I guess I had better do something amazing then. But I couldn't.

I tried to move. The pain came to me like a tidal wave, and it washed over my body. I gasped and fell back, my eyes flying open.

Mixed Emotions

"RENNA!"

"You're awake."

"Good job Sakura; that didn't take long."

The pain was now registering: how had I not noticed it before? It was so all-consuming. I couldn't even speak correctly.

"The--pain--" I gasped.

"Not enough painkillers," Sakura said. "But you don't want too many…_damn _I'm low on medical supplies. I didn't know the genin would be in such bad shape…I cant treat them fully, so we have to hurry back to Suna as quick as possible." Sakura raised a glowing hand and pressed it too my body. The pain subsided briefly, then when she stopped it came back again. It was decreased by such an indiscernible amount that I didn't notice.

"Sorry," Sakura sighed, sensing that it did me no good. "I'm running out of chakra…I had to treat 12 genin, plus Gaara kind of…" she trailed off, her eyes straying to the redhead.

I looked over at him too. He was standing on a tree a few feet away from us, his back turned. His posture was rigid. He had a ton of scratches and bruises, and one deep gauge on his leg. It did not look cleaned up at all. Maybe transforming into Shukaku took a bigger toll on him than I thought.  
"Did you…heal him at all?" I asked.

"Well he barely let me take care of his leg before shrugging me off," Sakura said bitterly.

I sighed inwardly again.

What to do. He would be so angry with himself. I guess I had better go talk to him, but I was still kind of angry with him.

Stupid emotions.

They were messing with my head.

Part of me felt sorry for Gaara. After he fought so hard to not be a monster, here he had gone and almost killed me. He would feel terrible.

_But then again, _I thought resentfully, _he hates me now…he wouldn't care._

I was so disappointed. I wasn't able to keep my promise, the most important one in my life.

Leg

After about a half an hour of resting, and while Sakura tried to get me something to eat ("I'm not hungry, Sak, and my throat probably couldn't handle it.") I finally decided it was time to get a move on.

"Well lets go then, if we need to get the genin back to Suna." I nodded towards the 12 genin, all camped outside the building on top of the tree branches. Kankuro was with him, which was kind of questionable, because he looked like he was a kidnapper himself. It kept the genin inline real well.

"Um, Ren, are you sure? You don't look so great," Naruto commented.

"Yes. You _obviously _aren't in a fit shape to travel," Temari scoffed.

"I'm fine," I glared at Temari.

I tried to get up, wincing as I sat up straight. Then I concentrated on getting my feet up.

"Hmph. At this rate we should get about 2 feet by sunset," Temari said.

"Shut up I got it-" But then I gasped as I tried to move my other leg.

"My leg!?"

It felt like 1000 pounds, and every time I moved it, it throbbed like hell.

"Er, yeah you hit that leg really hard. Well you hit both of them hard on that fall, but that one was the worst," Sakura said apologetically.

"What the fuck? Are we stuck here?" I was extremely irritated. How long would it be until this damn leg was good enough to move again? It seemed like it would take _weeks _before I could move effectively again, as I looked at the bloody mass that was my leg.

I would be the stupid reason we were held back.

"Don't worry it's not your fault," Sakura said, reading my thoughts again.

"I guess," I sighed.

But then I caught the look Sakura gave to Gaara, who hadn't moved an inch.

"It's not his fault either," I hissed fiercely.

She seemed taken aback that I even noticed.

"No, no of course not! Hehe, well if it was anybody's it was Toru who riled him up," she said hastily.

Temari rolled her eyes. "You know what let's just camp here for tonight. Then by tomorrow hopefully Sakura will have enough chakra to heal your leg."

"Yeah okay," Naruto said.

"Yes but I won't be able to heal her leg completely all at once," Sakura said. "We may need to wait until tomorrow night to start traveling…or maybe even the next day."

Temari rolled her eyes and sighed.

She went over to Kankuro and explained things. He nodded and pointed to the building.

Then she went over to try to talk to Gaara, who must've said something because a moment later she walked away. He was still a statue over here, not moving at all.

"What's he trying to accomplish over there, not moving at all?" I said hissed.

"Hey not so hard on him Ren! He feels horrible," Naruto said.

He had been pretty quiet till now, so I was privately surprised that he spoke up in his defense.

"Whatevs…what's in that building? Can we sleep there?"

"There's a few cots in there that the genin had to share…so crowded. All of us can't possibly fit in there, but how bout you and me and a couple genin sleep in there? The rest can try to fit into our tents…"

I snorted. There was barely enough tents for the six of us. How were we supposed to fit in 6 more genin?

"You don't have to baby me," I pouted. "I could probably actually fall asleep right where I am."  
Sakura wouldn't have any of that. I ended up spending the night in the stuffy building anyways, plus a few more complaining, snuffling genin.

**A/N: ehhh i have this story all planned out but from here on out i gotta say it gets pretty weird...Dx like i said this is an experiment,,,,guess im not very good at romance!? anyway thanks to my wonderful reviewers!!!!! 3**


	14. Aware

Aware

Just one short of a week later, we were traveling fast (as fast as we could anyway, what with my stupid leg and 12 genin, and not to mention Gaara's leg too…although he would never say anything about it) back to Suna. It took a lot of complaining from Kankuro, mocking from Temari, and an exasperated Sakura before we were all in a decent condition to travel in.

We mostly traveled in silence; the genin were even too worn out and maybe traumatized by the whole ordeal to say much.

I tried to keep away from Gaara as much as possible, trying not to make any eye contact or anything.

I was still aware that he was extremely angry.

With who though, I couldn't tell. Maybe me, maybe himself, maybe both.


	15. Kerin

**A/N: this chapter isnt really anything....its not a foreshadow or anything i just thought id throw it in there maybe it could be useful for future plot ideas.............................**

Kerin

At some point during our travels, Naruto piped up: "You guys can't take care of your own genin?"

It was meant as an actual question, instead of a jab that he normally would've done.

They got defensive anyway.

"Shut your mouth, Whiskers," Kankuro snapped.

"Hey. Don't be judging," Temari gritted out. "The team leaders had no idea what was going on. It was lunch break, and all of a sudden all three of them reported suddenly getting transformed into…like a dream or something. They said they each remember the dream was from their past, the happiest time that each of them ever had, and when it was over, they still wanted more. Like they couldn't get enough of that um, "happy time". It was a while before they realized that they kidnapped the genin."

I was so taken stunned I stopped, and Naruto then Sakura skidded to a stop behind me. I nearly fell off the branch, coming to my senses in just enough to time to grab on.

"Th-that jutsu…It sounds a l-lot l-like th-the…

m-my…" I stammered.

"Her _kerin!_" Sakura finished, surprised. "Ren's right, it _does _sound exactly like her genjutsu!"

Then Temari stopped, and eventually we all stopped and thought about it.

"Well do you know who used it?" I asked finally. I was numb; all that was going through my head was: _There could be one last member of my clan!_

"No," Temari said.

"Wouldn't it be either Toru or Kane…?" Naruto asked.

"That's not logical," Temari replied. "They have a whole team of ninja there. Toru and Kane were just the "leaders". Most of them were useless bodyguards, but some were actually useful. Remember Kane mentioning Tomio? He was a really skilled male medic-nin. He was the one who brain-wiped the Kakarikans. I know for a fact they had some actual proficient ninja. They could've just sent them to do the kidnapping. It wouldn't necessarily have been them…Renna, you don't know of _anyone _else in your Clan?"

"No," I replied. "I think my family was the last one. They all died in a mission to Iwa when I was three."

"Strange," Temari muttered.

Eventually though, we had to keep moving. The rest seemed to forget pretty quickly, but I lingered on it while we were whizzing through the forest.


	16. Tent II

Tent II

Eventually we reached a point where we had to rest; it was late and the sky was turning dark. The genin had been complaining for hours on end.

"I can't believe _you _people are going to become future ninja of Suna," Kankuro muttered. "Weaklings…We definitely were stronger than you when we were genin."

Due to our lack of tents, we had to squish together even _more._

"No choice," Sakura said. "Three genin to a tent plus two of us."  
"Let's just do the same as last time," Naruto butted in quickly. "I mean, same people. Just…plus a team of genin."

What. A. Jerk.

He must've enjoyed the last time he got to tent with Sakura.

I was mildly hopeful when Sakura threw a menacing glare his way, but she didn't say anything.

Dammit.

Now I would have to tent with Gaara…again.

I did not want to spend _another _night with his aura swirling around me, threatening to envelop me and choke me. And there was the fact that I would be squished between genin.

If I was trying to half-ass stall then, I was really trying to stall now. Not only did I offer to clean up everybody's things (milking it out as long as possible), I went to take a bath in a nearby pond, knowing even Naruto wasn't that stupid to intrude.

The water was really icy, but at least it was some refreshment.

Finally I had to get out, wrapping myself in a warm dry towel.

After getting dressed and packed, I sighed and pushed my way into the tent flaps.

The Fear and The Anger

It was stuffy, but I was glad when I found that Gaara and I would be separated by 3 genin.

I climbed as quietly as I could into my sleeping bag. I could tell that the genin were already asleep by their even breaths.

I could tell Gaara was not.

I tried to pretend like I was sleeping too, dragging out my breaths.

I guess I wasn't the only one who had gotten attuned, because he wasn't buying it.

"Renna." His voice was a hushed whisper, although it screamed urgency.

"No. Not now. I don't wanna talk." I kept my eyes closed, as if he could see it.

The darkness of the tent made me even more physically attuned to him, since I couldn't see him. It made my heart beat wildly, and I felt like I couldn't breathe. Well maybe _that _was because it was so damn _suffocating_ in here!

_Fresh air would be nice, _I thought. _Maybe I could move my sleeping bag outside! _I thought that was a prize idea.

"Ren please, can you just listen? Please."  
All traces of previous anger was now gone. It was all desperation now.

My walls were crumbling, I could feel it. I was about to give in.

"Morning," I said firmly. That was my final bargain. At least I could get a good night's sleep.

"No, Ren. Please. I won't be able to…really, can you just listen a sec?" He was getting impatient now. He always had gotten really impatient very easily.

Finally I sat up. "No, _you _listen, I don't want to-"

I had momentarily forgotten the three sleeping 12 year olds jammed between us. I had risen my voice too loud.

"Please…would you mind being quieter, Renna-sama? We are trying to sleep," one said in a muffled voice.

Then I saw a little sliver of light from the tent flap as Gaara slipped out. He beckoned me to follow him.

I sighed, but the temptation for fresh air was too strong to resist.

So was he.

A tiny, tiny but firm, part of me wanted to actually talk and get whatever needed to be said over with.

But the bigger part of me, -the fear, the anger-almost ruled it all out.

A Long Talk, A Moonlit Walk

When I got out, the moonlight was shining down, casting a silvery gray light to everything. It was a beautiful scene.

He was standing in the middle of it, his face tilted up towards the moon, palms up. His eyes were closed.

It was awkward, so I grit out, "I'm waiting."

After an immeasurable amount of time, he opened his eyes and faced me.

"Now just listen," he said softly, putting his hands on my cheeks.

I bit my lip while trying not to wriggle out of his hands.

"First of all, Ren…I am _so _sorry about what I said…earlier."

This time I couldn't resist a retort.

"How could-"

He put a finger on my lips to silence me.

"I don't even know why I said that…that I didn't still want you…you…I…realized that you are everything to me."

I shook out of his grasp this time.

"You just _now _realized that?" I said through clenched teeth. "I realized that a long time ago, you know. I thought I was doing a favor to _you, _by being _your _only friend, but really I was subjecting myself to having you as _my _only friend too…well then. No one ever liked me for befriending you. Temari _still _doesn't. You just now realized that we only had each other?"

He hung his head, just like a child. But really I knew that I was the one acting childish. He needed a break…not someone rubbing his mistakes in his face again, and again.

So I gave him a chance to explain.

"Look…I knew that all along too…It's just…I was confused after you left. And angry too. I guess I was kidding myself…saying I didn't need you but I did. I do still! I mean in the forest back there…I nearly lost it…in fact I think I did, but you brought me back again! I…you…you keep me in control. When you left so many years ago I lost it, and almost every night after that. You're the only path I can go…" He paused, his beautiful blue eyes searching mine. "I just really don't want you to…go away again."

He took my hands in his. An icy grip.

"I wouldn't ever," I whispered.

Everything crumbled just then. It all melted away. All of the misunderstandings, the anger, the fear…it was just me and him now.

Abruptly, the emotion of it all washed over me. Before I knew it, tears were streaming silently down my face.

He pulled me close to him. It was the first time in 10 years; he smelled so good, so familiar. More nostalgia flowed through me. It made me do something else that I had done so many years ago. When we were little, I used to tell him all the time that his hair was the most beautiful thing I had seen, other than possibly his eyes.

I used to always run my hand through his luscious silky red hair; I did that now, my hand raking through his hair again from the bottom all the way to the top of his head. It hadn't changed.

But it sparked something in us.

The need to be close was suffocating.

On my toes now, my hand that had stopped on top of his head slowly brought him down closer to me.

Our lips crushed gently into each other's. It was sweet and hesitant; like testing out the waters. But it was overwhelming. We pulled apart, and immediately I was longing for more.

"You're too hard to resist goddammit," I said huskily into his ear.

"So don't." His cool lips were grazing over my ear. I turned them back again, and this time kissed with no abandon; this time I did it thoroughly, my tongue exploring every part of his perfect mouth.

He tasted even better than he smelled.

I was vaguely aware of sand spilling around us. It was whirling faster and faster, like a mini sand tornado. I just thought it was all part of the effects; just another extra to add to this already perfect scene.

But when we pulled away, his sand was carrying something that landed in my hand that he was now holding.

It appeared to be a smooth dark charcoal colored stone; but when I looked closely, I saw a carving of the kanji for _love,_ the tattoo on his forehead.

I stared at it dumbly. "You…made this?" I said disbelievingly. "Just now?"

He nodded and produced a velvet strip. He took my stone and threaded it through the velvet, then he tied it around my neck.

"Stay with me," he whispered.

**A/N: rather abrupt ending but sorry.................chapter updates will be slow from now on cuz i already had up til here pre written but now i have to write everything and i have school and a busy schedule so.**


	17. Bed

Bed

We traveled til ¾ of the way back to Suna when we had to make our second rest. It happened to be the exact place we rested before - in the lodge. It was empty again, but with the genin some of us would have to share. I decided promptly that the genin would be the ones to share, and everyone but Naruto agreed.

I sighed when I got to the relief of the shower: my body needed to unwind. For the past few days we had been traveling nonstop, barely any time to stop and even think.

And I wanted to talk to Gaara.

I put on my favorite silk nightgown and thought about talking to him in the morning - we were all so dead from the traveling.

I was brushing out my hair when I heard a knock. I held my breath - because I could feel _his _aura.

"Come in," I said.

He entered soundlessly.

Still not turned around, I could hear him quietly say, "Would you like to share a bed with me?"

My breath hitched, but then I managed to calm it down.

"Y-yes, I would," I said, finally turning around and setting down my brush.

I walked over to him eagerly and took his hand.

As we rounded the corner, we bumped into Sakura. I froze. She froze, too. But then her eyes softened.

I inwardly breathed a sigh of relief - I was glad it was Sakura we ran into.

"I'll tell the genin we have one more room to spare," she said gently, and swiftly walked away.

We then made our way into Gaara's room uninterrupted.

It smelled wonderful, as always. Just like him.

He pulled back the sheets with his sand. "Ladies first?" He inquired.

I willingly climbed into the cozy bed and waited for him to get in.

I did a slight double take when he took off his shirt, exposing his smooth skin and chiseled muscles.

He climbed in and kissed me on the cheek before snapping off the light and drowning us into sudden darkness. But like before, the darkness intensified our attunement to each other; I was more aware of his presence beside me.

I snuggled up to him and he wrapped his arms around me.

It felt comfortable and familiar. We'd done this so many times before, although this time it was different. Back then it was a gesture of comfort to be close to one another. Now, to me at least, it was almost necessity to be close to him. Our auras melted into one, and we both did too.

**A/N: Hey i decided to end here..........i know its short and abrupt and this isnt my best writing, but im sorry but im just not feeling the story any more, so may as well end it............................to all those who have read it till now you guys are the BEST for giving my story a chance....X_X i dont know how you stayed with it but anyway........^_^**


	18. Epilogue

Stars

When you gaze up at the night sky and see the millions of shining stars, it makes you think of endless eternity, and how you want to spend it with your loved one, who is lying next to you.

The wind ruffles the grass, your clothes, his hair.

And you can tell him you want to be with him forever, although you don't need to say a thing.

You can just feel each other. You both can have silent conversations all night, and in the morning you will both smile at your unspoken jokes in the morning and beg quizzical looks from your teammates.

But it just shows how you two were made perfectly for each other, just like puzzle pieces, made from clay.

DANCERCITY


End file.
